Shannon Pite’s traditional names are Malidzas and Tlilinux. Shannon is from the traditional territories of Dzawada’enuxw located alongside the Gwa’yi River across from the Northern tip of Vancouver Island and Yalis which is located on Cormorant Island, a small island on the edge of Vancouver Island’s Inside Passage. Shannon moved to the Cowichan Valley…

Warren Weir grew up in Vernon, British Columbia, in the Okanagan Valley – the same place his mother was born and raised. Warren’s love for cooking great food is rooted in his family’s background in the restaurant and catering industry. The Weir family has a long history in the Okanagan Valley, but Warren’s education took…

Photo sourced from Flickr Dayli Hidalgo came to Canada from Cuba. One of the most dramatic changes Dayli faced was the drastic difference in weather, Cuba being very hot and Canada much cooler. Another big difference was the sheer size of Canada and our forests. She remembers thinking, “Everything is so green.” Now if these…

Curt Knippelberg was born and raised in the Cowichan Valley. He spent the first part of his childhood in the close knit community of Lake Cowichan. Curt had a wonderful childhood and was very busy with sports throughout his school years. He loved all sports, but especially loved boxing and wrestling. Curt is currently studying…

Hanna grew up in Northern Germany, near Bremen, in a small village of approximately 100 people. It was there that she met and married her husband, Helmut Blanken. From there the couple moved first near Hamberg and then near Marburg, where they had two children, Ann-Kristen and Halker. During the mid-ninetees, the couple started thinking…

Jihan Abou El Arab and her family moved from the United Arab Emirates to Canada five years ago. When I asked Jihan what her first impression of Canada was she explained that before settling in Canada, her family came to Canada for a summer vacation and had a great time exploring Canada’s beauty. Jihan added…

Christine Gilbertson was born in Madison, Wisconsin. At the age of five her parents moved the family south to Auburn, Alabama for a job. Christine shared that growing up in the sixties in the middle of the Civil Rights Movement was tough, especially coming from the North. Christine couldn’t wait to leave the South and…

Carolina Martino is originally from Argentina, but lived in Spain for ten years before moving to Canada. She explains her feelings for both countries as, “it’s like my heart is divided into two countries.” Carolina and her husband moved to Canada in 2009 and started their family here on Vancouver Island. Carolina’s first impression of…

Marina was born and raised on a ranch in Kamloops, British Columbia. At 19, Marina left home and traveled in Europe for a year before attending university at UBC. After completing a Bachelor of Science in Agriculture, Marina got a job as a ranch agrologist in Prince George where she worked for 7 years. Marina…

Hanna grew up in Northern Germany, near Bremen, in a small village of approximately 100 people. It was there that she met and married her husband, Helmut Blanken. From there the couple moved first near Hamberg and then near Marburg, where they had two children, Ann-Kristen and Halker. During the mid-nineties, the couple started thinking…